Charades
by Qweb
Summary: Searching for signs of a homegrown Hawaiian contract killer, Danny Williams finds more than he bargained for. Sometimes it doesn't pay to be too observant. Danny whump. Some violence in line with the series.
1. Chapter 1

Charades

Author notes: Hawaii Five-0 fanfiction. Some characters are mine, but not the main ones.

This is my favorite of the stories I've written so far, particularly part 2. I get a kick out of the title, but you'll have to wait for part 2 to appreciate it. (Sometimes I amuse myself.)

**Chapter 1: Suspicious activity**

"A homegrown Hawaiian contract killer?" Officer Kono Kalakaua asked doubtfully. "Are you putting me on?"

In the passenger seat of the silver Camaro, Detective Danny Williams half turned to regard the girl in the seat behind the driver.

"That's what I thought when I first heard about it," Danny agreed. "I thought they were hazing the new guy, But I've seen the reports. This Mo'o guy really exists."

The driver agreed. "A contract killer who only works in Hawaii," said Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, head of Hawaii Five-0, a state police task force.

"Ten hits in eight years," confirmed the fourth member of the team. Chin Ho Kelly sat beside his cousin Kono in the back seat. "Two on the Big Island, one on Maui, one on Kauai, the rest here on Oahu. All of them were booby-traps triggered remotely. And any witnesses were ruthlessly eliminated. Eliminated by hand," Chin pointed out. "Apparently they were knocked unconscious with a kick to the head and then choked to death."

"A kick to the head. Sounds like martial arts stuff," Danny mused.

"Investigators don't even know for sure that the two victims were witnesses. But they were killed in the same way and were found in places where they might have witnessed the bombs being triggered," Steve said.

"Their deaths are typical of Mo'o, too," Chin said, "He doesn't worry about collateral damage. He set one of his bombs in a children's playground that a prominent banker was dedicating. He killed the banker, 15 children, nine of their parents and a dozen other innocent bystanders. Thirty-seven people to kill one. That's Mo'o."

"Mo'o means what again?" the Jersey import asked.

"Lizard, reptile, serpent, dragon," Kono offered.

"Anything scaly and scary," Danny translated.

"Pretty much," Chin chuckled. He often enjoyed Danny's non-Hawaiian perspective.

"Dragon's too grandiose for a scumbag killer like this. I think I'll call him 'snake'," Danny decided.

"There are no snakes in Hawaii, Danny," Steve said.

"Except this one," Danny countered. "That is one area where I will acknowledge Hawaii's superiority to New Jersey. The absence of snakes."

Steve smirked. "You get a lot of snakes in the big city?"

"More than you'd think," Danny said seriously. "Anywhere there's rats, you're liable to find snakes. But as much as I'm a city boy at heart, there's a lot of non-city in New Jersey. I have spent more time in woods and fields and wetlands than I like to remember. The empty spaces are everyone's favorite body dump. You can't appreciate how fast your heart can beat until you're bending over to study a decomposing corpse and a 6-foot timber rattler sticks its head out of the ribcage!"

Danny shuddered at the memory.

"What did you do?" Kono asked.

"Screamed like a girl..."

"Hey!" the girl protested. Danny held up a finger to indicate he hadn't finished.

"... in a horror movie."

"Better," Kono said.

"Then I stumbled over my own feet and fell on my ass trying to get away. Fortunately, the snake didn't like the looks of me, either. It raced away in the other direction, scattering cops and forensic scientists. You wouldn't believe how fast a rattlesnake can move, but no faster than a fat old sergeant who sees a rattler coming straight toward him."

Steve chuckled. "I'll bet you got teased for a month over that."

"You'd lose that bet," Danny answered. "One of the officers took a wild shot at the snake as it passed, then had to explain why he discharged his weapon to a shooting review board. When asked why he fired at the snake, he answered, 'Because it was getting away.'"

Everyone laughed.

"So he's the one who got rubber snakes in his locker and a wanted poster of a timber rattler on his desk and the other juvenile pranks that pass for humor in a squad room. To my eternal relief."

"What do we expect to find in the park?" Kono asked.

"Probably nothing," Steve said. "It's a week until the Earth Day festival when the governor will be here, but I want us to be familiar with the ground. Then, when the time comes, we should be able to tell whether anything has changed."

"Too bad we couldn't do this earlier, when the light was better," Chin Ho said.

They'd been tied up in court most of the day.

"Well, sometimes the shadows at this time of day show up imperfections better," Danny suggested.

"And we'll come back a couple of times, to get used to the park, so we can detect any booby-traps before they go off," Steve said.

The park formed a rough rectangle with main roads on east and west sides and small side roads to the north and south. The eastern road was higher than the western, giving the park a gentle rolling slope. A jogging and biking trail circumnavigated the park, weaving in and out and up and down, through the trees and past the children's play area.

There were two parking lots, one in the southeast and one at the northwest corner. Because the eastern road was higher, the southeast lot was stood on a small bluff with a vehicle entrance directly off the main road and two tree-lined pedestrian paths — one connecting to the jogging track — that meandered down to the park.

The steep edge of the bluff was fenced off by a heavy chain that ran through a series of posts.

Danny knew the main stage for the Earth Day festival would be set up with its back to the bluff, so he claimed the park's southeastern corner when Steve brought the Camaro to a halt in the northwest lot. Steve assigned the less-experienced Kono to the open playing fields at the southwest corner and more-experienced Chin Ho to the wooded area in the northeast. He kept the northwest corner for himself, not because it was closest, but because it contained the tot lot. Mo'o had attacked children's playgrounds before.

As Danny approached the parking lot, he saw someone at the top of the bluff moving in a furtive way that raised the hackles on the back of his neck. He swung wide around the bluff, then walked soft-footed up the path, staying on the grass at the edge so the gravel didn't crunch under his feet. He moved stealthily along the edge of the parking lot and peered between the two cars parked there. He couldn't tell what the man was doing, but he didn't like the way he looked.

He eased back and touched the microphone on his collar.

"I've got suspicious activity at the parking lot in the southwest corner," he said quietly.

"Are you sure?" Steve asked, then felt Danny's glare clear across the park (diagonally!). "Sorry," Steve said. "Why are you sure?"

"I've got a suspect wearing a hoodie and a ski mask. Lake Placid this isn't. Might just be a tagger, but he doesn't move like a kid."

"All right. Converge on the parking lot," Steve ordered. "Don't try to take him without backup, Danny."

"Didn't you learn that from me?" Danny replied.

Hidden behind an SUV, Danny listened to furtive sounds of digging and scraping; then the noise stopped.

Danny stiffened and slowly drew his automatic. A hand swept around the rear of the SUV and struck the gun from his hand. As it clattered down the path, Danny's attacker followed up with a flying kick at the detective's throat. It was Mo'o's signature move, and Danny was ready for it. He slipped aside, caught the leg flying past and spun with Mo'o's momentum. He slammed his attacker into the side of the SUV as if Mo'o was a baseball bat. A satchel flew from the assassin's shoulder as he crashed to the ground.

"Police!" Danny yelled. "Put your hands behind your back!"

Halfway across the park, the other Five-0 officers heard their friend and doubled their speed.

Mo'o also doubled his speed and rolled between the SUV and a compact car. Danny pursued. Mo'o scrambled to his feet. Danny tackled him and they rolled across the parking lot, each struggling to get the upper hand. They finally lurched to their feet.

As they ran toward the sounds of combat, the Five-0 officers spotted Danny's gun and the satchel. Steve pointed and Kono diverted to snatch up the items without slowing her steps. Danny could hear his friends running up the gravel path, so could Mo'o.

With a desperate thrust, Mo'o drove Danny back two steps until he caught himself against the chain fence. But Danny's clutching hand took cloth away with him. The detective stared. Mo'o snarled and retreated. Before Danny could catch his balance, Mo'o grabbed something out of his pocket and threw it, then sprinted away from the approaching Five-0 team.

"Grenade!" Danny shouted.

As his friends dove for cover behind cars, Danny lunged toward the grenade. With memories of his high school shortstop days, he scooped up the grenade with a barehanded grab and fired it away as if trying to turn a double play. He hit the ground and covered his head as the grenade sailed over the edge of the bluff and down.

The explosion sent sand and dirt high in the air. The Five-0 cops coughed and wheezed while the cloud dissipated. "Everyone OK?" Steve coughed.

Chin and Kono sounded off. "Danny?" Steve called. There was no answer.

Chin leaped up, past the car that had protected them from the blast.

"Damn! The blast brought the whole cliff down. I don't see him anywhere."

The three ran up onto the now truncated parking area then slid down the sandy slope that replaced the bluff. There was no sign of their friend, then …

"There!" Kono pointed at one blue-clad shoulder emerging from the sand like a breaching whale.

Chin and Kono dug frantically to free Danny's face but the loose sand kept sliding down to fill the space. Steve got behind his friend, caught the still figure beneath the shoulders and tried to pull him up. He'd made a few inches of progress, when Danny began to thrash around.

"Danny, stop struggling!"

Danny managed to turn his head and free his mouth. In a hoarse but forceful whisper he answered, "You stop pulling! You're strangling me!"

More sand fell away and the others froze, appalled. The heavy chain that had fenced the parking lot was wrapped once around Danny's throat and again around his waist. When Steve pulled, the chain pressed tightly against his partner's windpipe. Steve released him, and the weight of the chain plunged Danny headfirst back into the sand.

"Sorry, sorry!" Steve grabbed him again and pulled more carefully until his partner's face was free of the sand.

"We can't do this alone," Chin calculated. "We need heavy equipment."

Kono already had her phone out and was calling 9-1-1. "We need paramedics and a fire truck with heavy rescue gear," she said, describing the situation to the dispatcher.

Steve shifted his legs carefully until he found a stable position in the soft sand. His grip was awkward, but any other pose seemed to steal Danny's air. Steve's muscles were already burning and his hunched position compressed his diaphragm, hindering his own breathing; but the commander called on his SEAL training to endure what he must for his friend's sake.

Danny was in a no-win situation. He could breathe better if he hung his head down, but then the half-inch-thick chain pressed against his carotid arteries until his vision went gray. When he turned his head to protect the blood flow, the pressure increased on his windpipe. He was just barely getting enough oxygen to stay conscious, but he tried twice to say something. All he could manage was a wheeze. His right hand had a screw driven through the center of his palm and his left hand was tangled in a piece of cloth that was caught between his chest and the chain. When he couldn't speak, he tried to lift his left hand, but he unbalanced Steve who slipped, caught himself, and grunted, "Don't."

Danny subsided, frustration evident on his red, strained face.

"Whatever it is will just have to wait, brah," Chin said. He scraped out more breathing space beneath Danny's down-turned face, but was afraid to do more, because he might undermine Steve's footing.

While they waited, Kono and Chin investigated Mo'o's satchel. It contained Claymore antipersonnel mines and equipment to make remote detonators. It made them sick to envision the damage Claymores would have wreaked on the Earth Day celebrants.

"He was mining the face of the bluff. He was going to shotgun the entire stage," Chin said.

"No chance of that, now," Kono said, looking at the sand pile that had been the shallow cliff.

"We'd better have the bomb squad go over this to see if he planted any mines before Danny interrupted him," Chin said.

Kono could tell Danny and Steve were listening, though they couldn't contribute to the conversation. She tried to lighten the mood. "You don't see this every day, cousin. You and I are the only ones who can talk."

Danny snorted. Steve twitched and his foot slid a half an inch. "Don't," he said again, but Kono could hear laughter in his strained voice.

Chin saw some people approaching, attracted by the explosion. "Crowd control," he said and left.

A jogger stopped. "Can I help?" he asked Kono. She heard sirens and the throaty honk of a fire engine. "Could you go to the entrance and direct the firemen?"

"You got it." He looked at the straining men in the sand pile and tossed Kono his water bottle and the towel around his neck, then took off running.

Kono crouched beside Danny and, with extreme caution, used her fingers to comb sand out of his hair, then, dampening the towel, she washed the sand off his face.

"Thank you," he mouthed.

She was afraid Danny might choke on even a sip of water, but she held the bottle for Steve to have one swallow.

A flicker of a smile thanked her, then Steve's face settled back into a remote calm, like a classic Greek statue set to endure the ages.

A yellow HFD fire truck and a rescue van roared up with an EMS ambulance right behind. The firemen piled out, hauling their gear. The captain came over to study the situation. Chin paced with him.

"As best as I can tell, the explosion made the bluff collapse. Danny and the chain rolled down the slope together," the cop explained.

"When Steve let go, the chain pulled Danny face first into the sand. We've dug the hole deeper, but we're afraid to move anything," Kono contributed.

As the captain distributed his men, one of the EMTs trotted over. His nametag read "Riley."

"Hey! I remember you guys," he exclaimed. He leaned over and tilted his head like a parrot to look Danny in the eye. "But you traded places."

One blue eye glared at him. Riley was unfazed. He and a rescue fireman positioned a stretcher board beneath Danny's chest and spread a blanket over it and over the sand.

"We have to tie off the chain before we can cut it," explained the fireman, whose name badge read "Harnett." "If it's under tension, it could snap and kill someone."

Riley fitted an oxygen mask over Danny's mouth. The detective's color improved immediately.

"Now can we get Steve out of there?" Riley asked Harnett.

They caught Danny by his shoulders and lowered him gently onto the supporting stretcher board, while two other firemen took Steve by the arms and pulled him away. The commander was so cramped up from his awkward position, they had to help him to a seat on the bumper of the ambulance. Riley's partner, a blonde woman named, Chandler handed Steve a small oxygen tank.

Riley patted Danny's shoulder, "Wait right there. Be right back." He bounded over to the ambulance where Steve was sucking oxygen. Riley flicked his penlight at each of Steve's eyes; then familiarly tilted Steve's head to get a look at a mostly healed scar on his scalp.

"Do I know you?" Steve asked.

"I suppose you wouldn't remember," the paramedic admitted.

"He treated you at the marina, boss," Kono said.

"I don't often see follow-up patients," Riley said cheerfully. "I was interested."

"We're ready," the fire captain announced.

Harnett shrugged into his heavy turnout coat and settled his helmet. He wrapped the blanket around Danny; then bent over him, shielding the fallen detective with his body. "Go."

Sparks ricocheted off Harnett's shoulder and helmet as the circular saw cut the chain on both sides of the detective. The Five-0 team could only watch as the firefighters unwrapped Danny. They dug him out of the sand and settled him on an ambulance stretcher. Riley began to immobilize the metal screw in Danny's hand.

"I'd rather let the doctors take this out. Too many important moving bits in the hand," he explained.

"Is that technical paramedic speak?" Chin asked, amused.

"I'm a trained professional," Riley said cheerfully.

Danny beckoned his friends closer and pulled off the oxygen mask.

"Steve, I saw …" His voice squeaked and failed.

Danny looked outraged at this further indignity. His expression gave way to panic as his wheezing increased, then ceased. He clawed at his throat.

"Damn!" Riley shoved the cops out of his way.

"Airway?" Chandler asked with her hand on the equipment.

Riley shined his light into Danny's gaping mouth. "No good. His throat's swollen. Can't force an airway down. Get me the trach kit," he shouted at his partner.

Danny's friends could only watch helplessly as his own body tried to kill him.

**To be continued**


	2. Chapter 2

_The contract killer smiled as he imagined the expression on McGarrett's face when he got to the hospital and found Williams already dead._

Charades — Conclusion

Hawaii Five-0 fanfiction

Lying on the stretcher, Danny Williams beckoned his friends closer and pulled off the oxygen mask.

"Steve, I saw …" His voice squeaked and failed.

Danny looked outraged at this further indignity. His expression gave way to panic as his wheezing increased, then ceased. He clawed at his throat.

"Damn!" Paramedic Ab Riley shoved the cops out of his way.

"Airway?" asked his rookie partner, Margrette Chandler with her hand on the equipment.

Riley shined his light into Danny's gaping mouth. "No good. His throat's swollen. Can't force an airway down. Get me the trach kit," he shouted at his partner.

Chandler cursed because she'd repacked the tracheotomy kit when the rescue seemed finished. She threw open the carrying case and dug for it.

Riley put his hand on Danny's forehead and, from inches away, looked him in the eye as if trying to hypnotize him.

"Danny, stop straining! Hold your breath!" he commanded.

Danny obeyed.

"I know it's scary as hell," the paramedic continued. "But there's plenty of oxygen in your lungs." He tapped the mask as a reminder. "I'm going to do a tracheotomy, then you'll be able to breathe again."

Danny nodded. He'd gone pale and had started to sweat. Riley didn't like the looks of him at all.

"What happened?" Steve McGarrett demanded.

"Irony happened. It might be a reaction to the dust, but I think the pressure of the chain prevented swelling, when we released the pressure, his throat swelled up and closed off the airway."

"Ab!" Chandler called.

Riley reached out and caught the trach kit spinning toward him. He swabbed the notch of Danny's throat with antiseptic and topical anesthetic. You didn't want a patient to flinch when you had a sharp knife at his throat. Talking as he worked, Riley pulled out a scalpel.

"I'll bet you wonder what 'Ab' stands for," he said, though no one had taken notice of Chandler's call. "Nothing as nice as Abner, I'm afraid. My parents named me Absalom. Can you imagine! Just because they were missionaries. They couldn't pick a nice Biblical name like Daniel. I could totally get behind Daniel." His patient's eyes were closed. He didn't react to Riley's chatter. Not good when a patient didn't react to his own name. Not good at all.

Though his babble was inane, Riley's fingers were skilled. He carefully made the cut and inserted the breathing tube. Air began to whistle in and out, but Danny's face remained pale and his eyes didn't open.

"Shock, and who can blame the poor guy. It's been a hell of a day," Riley said with heartfelt sympathy. He covered the detective with a blanket and started an IV. He and Chandler loaded Danny in their ambulance.

The paramedic turned to Steve.

"How are you?" Riley asked, wondering if they should take both officers.

Steve shrugged his shoulders experimentally. "A little stiff. Not bad."

"I recommend a hot shower and two ibuprophen," Riley said. He slapped the commander on the shoulder, raising a cloud of dust. "Hot shower first," he advised.

"Danny going to be OK," Officer Kono Kalakaua asked anxiously, following Riley to the driver's seat.

"I'm not a doctor," he answered. "But I've seen worse. I didn't find any broken bones just bruising. The trach I did may be the worst of it. It's damned annoying to have a hole in your neck. Gotta go."

He drove off swiftly, siren whooping.

Steve watched numbly. Chin poked through the sand and picked up the cloth that had been tangled around Danny's hand.

"Now we know what Danny was trying to say," Chin said solemnly. He held up a torn ski mask. "He saw the assassin's face."

* * *

After Steve showered in the locker room and changed clothes, he found representatives of two newspapers, two TV stations and an all-news radio station waiting for him in one of the conference rooms. A scattering of curious cops, including Chin Ho Kelly and Kono, loitered around the walls.

"I don't have much to tell you," Steve warned. "A police officer was injured in an explosion at Pakanani Park. His name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin."

The news people waited for more and got Steve's stone-faced stare instead.

The reporter for the city's biggest daily tapped his pen impatiently.

"Commander, I think everyone here can count to four. I don't see Detective Williams. Is he the one who was injured?"

Steve's nostrils flared as he considered laying his cards on the table. He didn't want to make enemies of these people. He had more than enough enemies. It might be a mistake, but his instincts said go for it.

"All right," he decided. "Off the record. Pens down. Cameras off. If I see one word of what I'm about to tell you before I give the OK, then I'll make sure you're locked out of every press conference I have anything to do with. Believe me, you have no idea how tight I can hold a grudge. Anyone who's not OK with this, can leave now."

Nosiness is the reason for being and the besetting sin of journalists. The reporters put down their pens and ostentatiously turned off their recorders. The cameramen lowered their lenses. The cops tensed with interest.

Steve nodded shortly. "We have reason to believe that, this afternoon, Detective Danny Williams interrupted the contract killed known as Mo'o in the act of planting a bomb at the park."

"'Reason to believe?'" A TV newswoman raised her eyebrows in query.

"Williams was injured in the struggle. He's been unable to tell us what happened. We hope to talk to him soon."

Behind him, Steve sensed Kono stirring uncomfortably. He wasn't sure he liked what he'd just said, either.

"They say Mo'o never leaves a witness alive," the veteran reporter said.

"Danny Williams is a trained police officer who had been warned about Mo'o's MO." It said something for the seriousness of the moment that no one chuckled at the oddly constructed sentence. "When Mo'o was unable to disable Danny with martial arts, he threw a hand grenade at him. Danny was injured in the explosion, but his injuries do not appear life threatening. And, by the way, what I said before is true. I have not notified his next of kin, yet. I'm not going to call his daughter until I get an update on his condition. So if I hear his name on TV..." Steve threatened.

"You won't," the other TV reporter promised. "But we can't sit on this forever.'

"When do you think you'll have some information we can use," asked the reporter from the smaller daily.

"Tomorrow morning."

The newspaper people looked unhappy. That would put them a full day behind everyone else. Steve understood that.

"OK," he gave in. "Don't release anything until 21:00, 9 p.m." the Navy man corrected himself. "After 9, you can use Danny's name and say he thwarted an attempt to plant a bomb at the park where the governor will be attending an Earth Day festival on Saturday. Using Mo'o's name would be pure speculation. I honestly can't confirm that until I talk to Danny. I'll try to get you more by 9."

The most senior newsman looked around at his colleagues. "The story is embargoed until 9 p.m., agreed? No broadcasts or blogs or web posts until then." Everyone nodded.

"'Heroic cop foils assassination attempt' — that's enough to get started with," the younger reporter said. "Have you got a bio of Williams we can pull from?"

"I'll send something," Steve promised. "Now I've got to get over to the hospital to check on my friend."

As Steve turned away from the media, he found Kono's brown eyes regarding him reproachfully. "Boss, did you just hang Danny out as bait?" she asked quietly.

Steve opened his mouth to deny it; then shut it again. He rubbed his head uneasily. There was no rational reason to believe that Danny was in more danger now than before the press conference, but Steve felt obscurely guilty. He looked at Chin.

"What do you think?"

"I think Danny was already hanging out there. You just twitched him a little."

"You felt it, too, then?"

"Like there was a predator in the room?" Chin said, expressing Steve's feelings exactly.

"One of the reporters?" Kono asked. She hadn't fully developed her cop instincts, but a beautiful woman knows when unfriendly eyes are on her, too.

"They have access to places and people that most civilians don't," Chin said judiciously.

"Something to think about," Steve agreed. He felt antsy and wanted to move. "I won't be happy until I hear what Danny has to say. Let's go see if the doctors are done with him yet."

The curious cops had scattered back to work, but it wasn't quite that easy to get away from the reporters. The radio man, in particular, needed something he could run right now, even if it was just 'no comment.' Steve had to give him a sound bite before he and his team could leave.

When he finally finished, Chin told him that he'd called the hospital for a report.

"They're just taking Danny back to his room now. The X-rays were negative."

"That's a relief," Kono said.

"He should be awake soon, then he can tell us what he saw," Chin said.

Confident that he was indistinguishable from the other uniformed officers in the room, Mo'o slipped away from the press conference and left the building. He had done some research and learned which officer was guarding Danny at the hospital. Armed with that information, and knowing his way around police dispatchers, Mo'o was confident he could gain access to the wounded detective before McGarrett got a chance to talk to him.

Mo'o smiled as he imagined the expression on McGarrett's face when he got to the hospital and found Williams already dead. The Dragon — as he thought of himself — never left a witness alive.

The assassin parked his motorcycle in front of the hospital and left his helmet on the bike. He'd already sent a message to the guard at Danny's door that he was urgently needed to make a deposition at the courthouse. (Cops almost always had upcoming depositions.) The officer was pacing anxiously, waiting for his promised relief. Mo'o left the elevator coughing into the crook of his elbow. He made straight for the drinking fountain, waving the impatient officer on his way. The guard ran to stop the elevator door from closing. The judge he'd been told to see was not a patient man.

As soon as he was gone, Mo'o stepped into Danny's room.

The detective was asleep, heart monitor beeping steadily, breath hissing through tubes.

Mo'o wanted to complete his delayed kill quickly and quietly. He slipped a pillow off a shelf and pressed it over Danny's face.

But Danny was breathing through his throat, not his mouth. The pillow just woke Danny up. But with blankets tucked tightly around his body and one arm fastened down because of an IV, the shocked detective couldn't defend himself. Mo'o ducked his head and ignored the one bandaged hand that was flailing at him.

In a moment, he would recognize his mistake, shift the pillow and Danny wouldn't have a chance.

Well, maybe one chance, because, behind Mo'o, the door opened silently.

Worry made Kono impatient to see how Danny was. Steve dropped her at the front door of Hawaii Medical Center. A police cruiser and a motorcycle took up the official HPD spot out front, so the Five-0 officers headed for the parking garage.

It was peak visiting hours, just after dinner, and every parking spot — legal and illegal — was full. Steve drove around in increasing frustration, finally diving into a spot ahead of a harried man in a Cadillac. He stuck his head out the window and cursed. Steve waved his badge at the man who waved a single finger back, then drove off.

Chuckling, Chin and Steve headed for the elevators.

Kono hurried into the building. Leaving the elevator, she noticed there was no officer outside Danny's room. The lack of a guard raised a red flag for the rookie cop. Though the guard might be inside the room with Danny, that empty hallway made her hurry her steps.

She opened the door quietly — it was a hospital — and saw a man dressed as a cop pressing a pillow over Danny's face.

Her hand touched the weapon in the small of her back, but she couldn't shoot when he was right on top of Danny. Besides, it was a hospital.

Instead, she darted forward, thrust her forearm around his neck and kicked his feet out from under him. Mo'o fell away from the man in the bed. Danny's bandaged hand pawed away the pillow. The glare on his red face told her that Danny was alive — and more — awake and aware. His eyes flashed past her and widened in silent warning.

She threw herself to the side, pulling her gun, but Mo'o was fast. He caught her arm, stripping the gun from her hand. It skittered across the floor under a chair out of reach. Though he disarmed her, Mo'o didn't catch Kono. She slipped free and spun as he drew his service revolver. Kono was quick, too. A sweeping kick sent Mo'o's weapon flying over Danny's bed. It hit the wall and dropped to the floor.

Kono followed up with a flurry of blows and kicks, but Mo'o blocked and ducked, then he struck back, driving Kono back to the wall. The young woman was a skilled martial artist, but so was Mo'o and he outweighed her. He trapped her body against the wall and wrapped his large hands around her throat. He always went for the throat.

Danny watched helplessly. His left arm was fastened to the side railing on his bed, to prevent him from accidentally pulling out the IV while he was unconscious. His right hand was immobilized by thick bandages on his wounded palm. A thumb and forefinger grip was all he could manage, but he had to help his friend.

With his two-fingered grip, he tore the the sensors off his chest.

The heart monitor flat-lined and an alarm began to shrill. Startled, Mo'o turned to look and Danny tossed the murder pillow in his face.

There was no force in the throw, but Mo'o automatically put up one hand to block the puffy missile. Kono twisted the fingers of the other hand and broke free, backing toward the door and the chair that hid her gun.

Mo'o glared at Danny. "I should have brought a knife," he growled.

Danny grinned fiercely and swept a bandaged finger across his throat, then pointed at Mo'o.

Wanting to wipe that smile off his ostensible victim's face, the assassin took a step toward Danny. Kono took a step toward her gun. Mo'o stopped.

Kono's eyes flicked toward the door. Mo'o cursed himself. He knew she hadn't come alone. She was stalling until McGarrett and Kelly arrived.

With this new motivation, Mo'o was ready to strike when a figure pushed the door open.

The nurse hastened in, answering the alarm. Before she could react to the odd scene, Mo'o backhanded her into Kono who tripped backwards and fell, legs tangled with those of the nurse and the chair.

Mo'o shared one last glare with the helpless yet triumphant Danny, then left, smoothing his hair and walking briskly to the elevator. No one looked twice at him. As the door closed on his car, the elevators from the parking garage opened and Steve and Chin stepped out. Impatient with the delay but unalarmed, they opened the door to Danny's room to find two women squirming on the floor.

"Boss!" Kono gasped as she untangled herself. "Some guy dressed as a cop just tried to kill Danny. You just missed him!"

Steve spun toward the door. Danny shook the bars of his bed and growled like a caged gorilla, making his friends pause in mid-pursuit. Danny released the bars, wincing at the pain in his bandaged hand, but continued to make urgent, inarticulate sounds.

"The man's got something to say," Chin said perceptively.

"The killer's getting away," Steve reminded him.

Chin ignored his boss and stalked forward, staring into Danny's eyes as if he could read his mind. One experienced cop to another, perhaps he could. There was really only one thing worth delaying pursuit.

"He recognized the suspect," Chin said with certainty. "He didn't just see Mo'o; he can ID him!"

Danny pointed his finger at the prizewinner.

"How can he tell us if he can't talk or write?" Steve asked reasonably.

"He can type!" Kono answered, grabbing for her phone. "Honestly, I don't know how you old folks did police work without smart phones."

The men shared a grin at her pertness.

She opened the notepad on her phone and offered Danny the keypad. With one finger he poked out a message. Kono turned the screen to Steve.

"Justice."

Steve rubbed his head. Danny wanted justice? That made sense, but it didn't seem very helpful to Steve. It did to Chin Ho.

"Wait a minute," Chin said. "Justice. Mark Justice?"

Danny's eyes lit and he gestured thumbs up.

"Sgt. Mark Justice, HPD," Chin elaborated.

Steve understood. "Not a fake cop, a real cop."

Danny grunted in satisfaction. At last he'd gotten his message across. He had recognized the man beneath the ski mask.

Kono thumbed through the HPD roster on her smart phone. "Confirmed. That's the man I saw."

"Justice is a motor cop. There was a police motorcycle out front when we dropped Kono off," Chin recalled.

Steve pictured the layout of the hospital and realized they might have a chance to cut off Justice before he got away. "There's no way we can get to the car in time, but the side stairs face the driveway." He took off running, shouting for Kono to call in an APB. Chin chased Steve down the hall.

The concrete stairwell went down the side of the building in a series of open landings that faced the one-way driveway that led away from the hospital. If he didn't want to break traffic laws and be conspicuous, Mo'o would have to drive past the stairwell.

Steve and Chin didn't care about being conspicuous. They pounded down the hallway, waving badges and shouting 'police' at anyone who got in their way.

"It might not be his bike, boss," Chin shouted. "It might be some other officer."

"Any honest cop will be responding to Kono's APB right now. If we see the bike leaving the hospital, that's our guy," Steve said with certainty.

Chin wasn't so sure he'd take those odds, but the Navy intelligence officer used a different calculator than a cop did. Chin hoped Steve was right.

As they piled out onto the stairwell, Justice walked casually out the front door, trying not to attract attention. He climbed on the bike and fastened his helmet. His radio crackled with the APB. His lips tightened. He'd made plans for the day he was discovered, but he cursed the Jersey cop who'd brought that day about. He kicked his bike to life.

On the stairs, Steve and Chin heard the motorcycle roar. Steve bounded around a corner, and then took up a shooting stance braced on the railing. "Go! Go!" he ordered Chin.

Chin flew past, but he was two landings above the ground. The motorcycle appeared, as Chin reached the sidewalk. The bike paused to let a car pass.

"Justice!" Chin bellowed.

The officer's head jerked around. Chin bared his teeth in a victorious grin. This was the right man, no mistake!

"Freeze!" Chin pointed his handgun.

Instead, Justice gunned his bike down the lane right past Steve's position.

The commander's automatic barked once, twice, three times. The first shot spattered off the asphalt, but the second spanged off the bike and the third took Justice through the foot.

He screamed and lost control. The bike crashed on its side, crushing the already wounded foot. Mo'o clawed for his sidearm, but Chin stamped on his hand, pressing until Justice's fingers spread wide.

"You're not going anywhere with that bike on you, so stop playing games," Chin said.

Justice spread his hands out in surrender. Chin took his weapon as Steve ran up.

"Nice shooting, boss."

"Not so much. I was aiming at the tires."

Chin shrugged. "Whatever works."

Steve unclipped Justice's radio and cancelled the APB. "Suspect is in custody," he said with satisfaction.

"You'd never even suspected me if that damned Williams hadn't seen my face," Justice cursed.

Steve stuck the toe of his boot in Mo'o's mouth. "Don't talk about my partner; you'll get his name dirty. He despises dirty cops. You are so far below him, you wouldn't even feel it if he walked on you."

Chin regarded his boss curiously. It almost sounded like he was channeling one of Danny's patented rants. Steve stepped on the assassin cop's chest and shoved him back to the pavement.

"You caused your own downfall, but I'm sure Danny was glad to help. Book 'em, Chin. For Danno."

"My pleasure."

Steve pulled out his phone. "I've got some news guys to call — and an 8-year-old girl." He shook his head as he turned away. "'Justice!' What a name. 'Snake' suits you better."

After putting out the APB and firmly overriding the disbelief of the dispatcher, Kono couldn't catch up with the others. She elected to remain and guard the patient, because Justice might have doubled back. It seemed like an hour, but was only a few minutes before Steve called.

"They got him," Kono reported.

She got a grunt in reply.

Recovered from the blow to the head, the nurse bustled around, reattaching the patient's leads and examining the bandage on his hand, which showed several stains.

"This isn't going to heal properly if you keep using it," she warned.

Danny gave her a reproachful look.

"Not that you had much choice," she admitted. "But try to rest it now."

"Thanks for saving my life, Danny," Kono said.

Danny pointed at her and at himself, then pointed that finger up. It only took her a second to catch on to his charades.

"I saved you first?" she translated. He nodded.

"Maybe," she confessed. "But you saved me with both hands tied behind your back. You rock, Danny Williams!"

Danny laughed silently and showed Kono the "rock on!" horned first.

"Stop with the hand already!" the nurse commanded.

Steve, Chin Ho and Kono returned to Five-0 headquarters from the arraignment of Mark Justice. Kono's testimony about the attack on Danny had been enough to bind the former HPD officer over for trial. The more Five-0 investigated, the more they were hopeful of tying him to at least one of Mo'o's killings.

Kono sighed as they entered the war room. "I miss Danny. It's too quiet here without him."

"You'll be sorry you said that after he gets back," Steve predicted.

"Heard that," said a hoarse voice. Danny looked out from behind a computer screen.

"Danny!" Delighted to see him up and around, Kono ran over to hug her friend. Chin slapped him on the shoulder. Steve tried to pretend he didn't care, but couldn't hide his smile.

"Been catching up," Danny said, gesturing at the computer monitor. "You're getting a lot of dirt on Justice."

"Once we knew who to look at, it got easier," Chin said. "The bomb squad found mines in the sand at the park that match the mines in the satchel Justice dropped. We can trace his movements and even put him on Maui and Kauai when those assassinations occurred."

"And we've got a line on the explosives he used," Kono added. "With more time, we're going to nail him for murder."

"And at the very least, we can get him for attempted murder of a police officer," Steve said.

"Least?" said police officer protested.

Steve shrugged.

"I'm amazed that Justice could get away with his charade for so long, right under our noses at HPD," Chin said.

Kono giggled. "But then Danny's charades put him away." She tapped her nose in the charades sign for "on the nose."

Steve sighed with mock nostalgia. "Charades. I liked it when you were talking with your hands, partner. It was peaceful."

Danny glared at him. "You prefer charades? Here's one for you." He held up two fingers.

"Two words," Chin translated.

Staring straight at the commander, Danny clamped his teeth on his finger."

"Teeth, no, bite?" Steve said, playing along.

Danny tapped his nose, then jerked his thumb at his own chest.

Kono dissolved in giggles. Chin turned away to hide a smile.

"Me…" Steve pondered. "Bite … me. Hey!"

Danny was satisfied he'd gotten the last word — without saying a word at all.

**The End**


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